In general, present agricultural (i.e., producing crops and raising livestock) techniques rely on an inherent dichotomy of land usage. On the one hand, land is required for planting of the crops to be farmed, or situating livestock. On the other hand, land is also used, either locally or at some distance from the crops or livestock, for water storage, e.g., in the form of ponds or reservoirs.
In many geographical locations, it is not possible to conveniently farm in certain areas, particularly hilly regions. Further, on hilly islands, it is even more difficult to farm as compared to hilly regions at inland locations. Water for irrigation is sparse, unless a pond is positioned somewhere on the island for water collection during rainfall.
However, usage of ponds for water collection leads to inherent inefficiencies. For example, unwanted minerals and other impurities collected in the pond (e.g., within the soil, algae, other organisms) are transported along with the water for the plants. Such impurities may attract pests, which in turn must be countered with pesticides. While these impurities may be prevented to some extent with water treatment, there is a clear expense associated therewith.
Further, the act of water transport in and of itself is inefficient, requiring electricity or other energy to pump the water long distances.
Rainwater collection has been done for as long as mankind has existed as a source of drinking water. Today, systems remain commonplace whereby rainwater is collected for home use for environmentally and cost conscious individuals. However, without energy-consuming filtration systems, rooftops run-off water is generally not potable.
Therefore, a need remains in the art for improved agricultural systems and methods, particularly for improved land and rainwater usage efficiency.